Of the state and local tax deduction workarounds proposed by several high-tax states, allowing taxpayers to claim state tax payments as donations in order to claim the federal charitable deduction seems the likeliest to succeed.

New Jersey and New York governors refuse to let up in their assault against the new federal law that caps the deduction for state and local taxes.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) February 8 called on state lawmakers to send him a bill that would allow taxpayers to pay property taxes as charitable contributions to circumvent the new $10,000 cap on the federal deduction for state and local taxes.

Democrats are offering a taste of their election year argument against the GOP’s new tax law, pointing out that corporations, not individuals, disproportionately reap the benefits.
Senate Finance Committee ranking minority member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., told reporters Feb. 7 that companies have “announced nearly $100 billion in corporate stock buybacks” since Republicans passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, while only 2 percent of adults have seen any benefit from the law.

Lawmakers are working to make technical corrections to a provision in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that puts many grain suppliers at a competitive disadvantage to agricultural cooperatives.
The provision, which offers a deduction to farmers and ranchers who sell to cooperatives, was a last-minute addition to the month-old tax law (P.L. 115-97) and prompted howls from independent grain companies unintentionally threatened by the change.

California tax officials have been quietly arranging for loads of cash to be deposited with Bank of America, a process that's frightened employees tasked with receiving money that reeks of marijuana.
Selvi Stanislaus, executive officer of the California Franchise Tax Board, confirmed January 30 that state tax authorities have been working with Bank of America to make it easier for cannabis businesses to turn over cash to comply with their state tax obligations.

President Trump took credit for tax reform and the strong economy during his first State of the Union address, and in doing so pitched a message that Republicans hope will resonate with voters ahead of the 2018 elections.

The new 21 percent corporate tax rate is high enough that many businesses are likely to keep pursuing tax-free transactions, even as others consider the advantages of taxable transactions, two former Treasury officials agreed January 29.
“I think just the rate itself probably isn’t changing the landscape too much,” Marc Countryman of EY, a former Treasury associate tax legislative counsel, said at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law Tax Institute in Los Angeles.

Treasury officials harbor reservations about a new tactic some states are considering to avoid high property taxes — allowing tax-deductible donations to state-affiliated charities — but are not outright rejecting it.

On the same day its director sought more funding from Congress for staffing and transparency efforts, the Congressional Budget Office announced that the release of its annual budget and economic outlook would be delayed.

It’s unclear if the carried interest provision in the new tax law is intended to apply only to C corporations or to S corps as well.
The IRS may not be able to fix the oversight in guidance if the problem isn’t addressed by Congress in technical corrections, according to practitioners.

Since the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc., Tax Analysts has heard from dozens of practitioners, academics, interested parties, and members of Congress. While there is a clear consensus that the Court did not take the case to simply reaffirm Quill, there is a wide range of opinion on just what the justices will do and how.
Here, in their own words, is their take.

The U.S. Supreme Court's review of Quill's physical presence standard sets up a complex dilemma for the justices who may want to avoid creating a regulatory taxing scheme but want to clarify where the line is to be drawn on states' tax authority in the borderless age of online commerce.

Add one more industry that is seeing benefits from the new tax overhaul: legal professionals.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (P.L. 115-97) has only been in place for a month, but firms are already seeing signs that it will spur more demand for their services that could lead to increased hiring as clients try to adjust their tax plans in response to sweeping changes affecting passthrough businesses and corporations.